Bucket assemblies for motor control centers (MCC) with disconnect assemblies and related MCC cabinets and methods

ABSTRACT

Circuit breakers with a rotary handle attached to an inwardly oriented shaft that connects to a gear assembly that translates rotational input to linear input also include a trip assist spring in communication with the rack gear so that, in operation, the trip assist spring applies a force to the operator slider and forces the handle to a consistent trip position.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 61/890,495, filed Oct. 14, 2013, the content ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference as if recited in full herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to motor control center units.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As is known to those of skill in the art, Motor Control Centers (MCC)can include cabinets or enclosures that hold multiple, typicallymodular, bucket assemblies or units of various sizes. See, e.g., U.S.Pat. No. 4,024,441, the contents of which are hereby incorporated byreference as if recited in full herein. Eaton Corporation has recentlyintroduced a MCC product line with compact bucket assemblies thatconveniently plug into a slot or space in an MCC cabinet. The product issold under the product name, Freedom 2100 MCC. See also, U.S. PatentApplication Publication Serial Number US2013/0077210, the contents ofwhich are hereby incorporated by reference as if recited in full herein.

The bucket assemblies can include rotary handles that are disposed onthe front door. The rotary handle can be configured to convert therotary motion of the rotary handle to the linear or translational motionof a circuit breaker linear action lever. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos.6,194,983 and 7,186,933, the contents of which are incorporated byreference as if recited in full herein. The rotary handle is typicallymounted parallel with the plane of the faceplate of the molded casecircuit breaker, but spaced outwardly from it by the depth of the handlemechanism. Usually a series of linkages are utilized to interconnect therotary motion of the rotary handle to the linear motion of the circuitbreaker handle or lever.

Despite the above, there remains a need for alternate bucket assemblyconfigurations.

SUMMARY OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention provide bucket assemblies with an externalhandle that has a consistent tip position which can provide a visualindication of the status of the circuit breaker so that an observer cantell whether the circuit breaker is conducting electrical current orblocking electrical current.

Embodiments of the invention provide a unit with a rotary position of arotary handle positioned on a centerline of the breaker, in-line with acorresponding center pole.

Embodiments of the invention symmetrically position a disconnectoperator handle on an MCC cabinet allowing a panel board, mounted tandem(line to line), dual feeder breakers in a compact unit with both handlespositioned correctly aligned.

Embodiments of the invention provide a handle detent to assist inpositioning the handle to the defined tripped configuration, typicallywith the handle in a vertical orientation.

Embodiments of the invention spring-bias the operating mechanism to aconsistent trip position, independent of a breaker toggle trip position.

Embodiments of the invention provide a handle escutcheon with aspring-loaded door assembly that locks the door shut when the circuit isenergized. The door and latch and door catch configuration can beconfigured so as to avoid requiring manual adjustment for properassembled alignment.

Embodiments of the invention integrate a gear and rack, dynamicoperating mechanism and a sliding carriage configuration to articulatebreaker lever and/or fuse switch displacement

Embodiments of the invention are directed to bucket assemblies. Thebucket assemblies include an external rotary handle having a defined ONposition and OFF position associated with conduction and non-conduction;a shaft attached to the rotary handle and extending into the bucketassembly; an operator mechanism cooperably engaging the shaft, theoperator mechanism comprising a gear assembly with a rack gear thatlinearly moves an operator slider; a circuit breaker in the bucketassembly having a lever in communication with the operator slider; and atrip assist spring that cooperates with the rack gear to move theexternal rotary handle to a defined consistent orientation when thecircuit breaker trips.

The bucket assembly of claim 1, wherein the rotary handle ON and OFFpositions are about 90 degrees apart.

The bucket assembly of claim 1, wherein the trip assist spring applies aforce to bias the operator slider to reside at a location that is at amedial position of its sliding travel path.

The bucket assembly of claim 1, wherein the rotary handle has anexternally visible protruding shaped feature or member.

Other embodiments are directed to a bucket assembly that includes arotary handle attached to an inwardly oriented shaft; a drive gear incommunication with the shaft so that rotation of the rotary handlerotates the drive gear; a pinion gear in communication with the drivegear; a rack gear in communication with the pinion gear; an operatorslider in communication with the rack gear; a stationary operator basein communication with the operator slider and attached to a circuitbreaker; a breaker lever in communication with the operator slider; anda trip assist spring in communication with the rack gear and slider. Thetrip assist spring applies a force to bias the operator slider to resideat a location that is at a medial position of its sliding travel path tothereby provide a trip assist force to move the rotating handle to aconsistent OFF position when the circuit breaker trips.

The circuit breaker can have a housing with a door. The rotary handlecan reside outside the door. The door can include an automatedelectronically operated internal interlock assembly inside the operatormechanism envelope that may have a laterally extending spring residingover a door interlock bolt. The bolt slidably can extend to lock a doorbracket.

The rack gear can include rack gear teeth and the trip assist spring canbe held over an outer surface of a guide rod held above the rack gearteeth.

The rack gear can have horizontally oriented rack gear teeth and therack gear can have an upper segment that resides a distance above therack gear teeth. The trip assist spring can be held in a horizontalorientation over a guide rod held by the upper segment of the rack gear.

The trip assist spring can have an uncompressed length that is betweenabout 50-100% of a length of the slider's sliding travel path.

The trip assist spring can have continuously compressed configurationswhen in operative position in the bucket/breaker.

The trip assist spring can have a length that is 30-80% less than alength of a guide rod extending therethrough.

The trip assist spring can be held by an outwardly extending arm of therack gear in a horizontal orientation over a guide rod above rack gearteeth of the rack gear. At least one end portion of the guide rod can beheld in a fixed position.

The assembly can include a stationary mounting member that has a primaryplanar surface and an end portion that extends inwardly therefrom,residing in front of the operator base, closer to the rotary handle thanthe operator base; and a guide rod that holds the trip assist spring.The guide rod can have an end portion attached to the end portion of themounting member.

The rotary handle can be positioned on a centerline of the circuitbreaker, substantially in-line with a corresponding center pole, toallow a load side of the breaker to reside facing an outer side wall ofthe housing.

The assembly can be provided in combination with a plurality of bucketassemblies held in a Motor Control Center cabinet.

The rotary handles of different bucket assemblies can be verticallyaligned irrespective of a size of a frame of the circuit breaker andhave a substantially common ON/OFF position of the rotary handle.

The assembly can include a handle having an inwardly extending plungerrotably residing in a base having a detent to assist in positioning therotary handle to a defined OFF position in a tripped configuration.

The door interlock assembly can reside within about 0.5 inches to about1 inch envelope between a door under a front cover of and the operatorbase in a depth direction along with the drive gear, pinion gear, rackgear, and trip assist spring therebetween.

The operator base can have a horizontally extending slot. The operatorslider can have a rectangular slot that is smaller than the baseoperator slot. The breaker lever can extend through both the operatorslider and operator base slots. The rack gear can be attached to anupper portion of the operator slider. The trip assist spring can be incommunication with an upper portion of the rack gear.

Embodiments of the invention are directed to bucket assemblies thatinclude a rotary handle attached to an inwardly oriented shaft; a gearassembly attached to the shaft configured to translate rotational inputto linear input; an operator slider in communication with the gearassembly; a breaker lever in communication with the operator slider; anda trip assist spring held by a laterally extending guide rod incommunication with the gear assembly. During a trip event, the tripassist spring forces the rotary handle to a consistent trip position.

Other embodiments are directed to motor control center (MCC) cabinetswith bucket units having external (e.g., external of the breaker or unitto be accessible by a user as needed) rotary handles. The one or morebucket units can be configured so that the rotary handle communicateswith a fused disconnected (e.g., a fuse and switch) and one or morebucket units are configured so that the rotary handles communicate withan operator mechanism for a circuit breaker disconnect, and wherein allthe rotary handles have the same configuration and the same ON/OFFpositions.

The fused disconnect and the operator mechanism each comprise a drivegear, a rack gear and a slider. The operator mechanism can include alaterally extending spring that bias' the slider to a medial position ofa sliding travel path.

Still other embodiments are directed to a bucket assembly that includestandem (line to line) dual breakers positioned with first and secondspaced apart rotary handles positioned vertically and horizontallyaligned.

The bucket assembly can have a substantially constant width irrespectiveof height and the height and/or frame size are provided in modular 6inch increments of between about 6 inches to about 72 inches.

The dual circuit breakers can be oriented so that respective load sidesface a respective opposing outer side of the bucket assembly and arespective incoming side are adjacent each other.

The dual breakers can both be feeder breakers.

Yet other embodiments are directed to Motor Control Center (MCC)cabinets with at least one unit having dual side-by-side external rotaryhandles in communication with respective circuit breakers, therespective circuit breakers oriented with a load side facing outward andthe incoming side between the two handles facing inward.

Some embodiments are directed to Motor Control Center (MCC) cabinetswith bucket units. The bucket units can have a common size externalrotary handle that each communicates with a respective internaldisconnect assembly that engages a toggle or switch of an internalcircuit breaker or a fuse disconnect switch. The different units canhave different frame sizes associated with different amperage ratings.The rotary handles can all rotate 90 degrees between OFF and ONpositions and can have a common trip orientation.

Some embodiments are directed to bucket assemblies with an externalrotary handle that communicates with a disconnect assembly having a gearsystem having a rack gear and disconnect slider that engages a (fused)disconnect switch.

The rotary handle can travel about 90 degrees between ON and OFFpositions, and wherein the disconnect slider moves vertically up anddown in response to rotation of the handle, which turns a drive gearthat moves the rack gear attached to the disconnect slider.

The disconnect assembly can include a pivoting arm that has a lower endportion that extends into a slot or aperture of the slider and a switchcontact member or feature that engages the (fused) disconnect switch.

Yet other embodiments are directed to modular bucket assemblies with anexternal rotary handle that communicates with a gear system having arack gear and slider. The modular bucket assembly can be provided indifferent sizes that accommodates one or both of: (i) different framesize circuit breakers of different amperage rating or (ii) both acircuit breaker and a switch disconnect, and wherein each modular bucketassembly irrespective of frame size or circuit breaker or switch type,includes a common size and shape respective external rotary handle thathas common ON and OFF orientation.

Each bucket assembly with a circuit breaker can have a mounting memberwith a planar primary body that holds a guide rod having a laterallyextending spring residing thereon in a compressed configuration.

When mounted in a Motor Control Center cabinet, all single breaker andfused/switch units have rotary handles that are aligned along a lefthand side of the MCC.

Other embodiments are directed to methods of fabricating units usingmodular components for a Motor Center Control (MCC) system. The methodsinclude: (a) providing at least first and second sets of operator gearsof different sizes; (b) providing at least first and second operatorsliders of different sizes, different configurations or different sizesand different configurations; providing unit housings of differentdefined heights; (c) providing external rotary handles of a definedsize; providing different frame size circuit breakers of differentamperage; (d) attaching one set of the gears, one of the operatorsliders and one of the circuit breakers to the unit housing; (e)attaching a door to the unit housing; attaching a front cover over thedoor; and (f) attaching one of the external rotary handles to a shaftextending out the door and front cover.

Yet other embodiments are directed to methods of modular buildfabrication for units of a Motor Center Control (MCC) system. Themethods include: (a) providing at least first and second sets ofoperator gears of different sizes; providing at least first and secondoperator sliders of different sizes, different configurations ordifferent sizes and different configurations; providing unit housings ofdifferent defined heights; providing external rotary handles of adefined size; and providing different frame size circuit breakers ofdifferent amperage, wherein respective units of the MCC system compriseone of the unit housings, at least one of the circuit breakers and, foreach circuit breaker, at least one set of the operator gears, one of theoperator sliders, and one of the external handles, and wherein therotary handles have the same configuration and size irrespective ofcircuit breaker frame size.

A modular bucket assembly configuration can have a bucket assembly withan operator slider, operator base and gear system with a trip assistspring. The modular bucket assembly is provided in different sizes witha plurality of different amperage ratings.

The operator base of each different size bucket assembly can have amounting member with a planar primary surface that has a curvilinearlong side that is above and adjacent a slider path of a respectiveoperator slider, and wherein the mounting member has an end portion thatholds an end portion of a guide rod that holds the trip assist spring ina laterally oriented, compressed configuration.

A modular bucket assembly can have a rotary external handle incommunication with an operator comprising an operator slider, base andgear system with a trip assist spring, wherein the bucket assembly isprovided in different sizes with a plurality of different amperageratings including at least two of 250 A, 400 A and 600 A, and whereinthe bucket assemblies have trip unit modules.

Further features, advantages and details of the present invention willbe appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art from a reading ofthe figures and the detailed description of the preferred embodimentsthat follow, such description being merely illustrative of the presentinvention.

It is noted that aspects of the invention described with respect to oneembodiment, may be incorporated in a different embodiment although notspecifically described relative thereto. That is, all embodiments and/orfeatures of any embodiment can be combined in any way and/orcombination. Applicant reserves the right to change any originally filedclaim or file any new claim accordingly, including the right to be ableto amend any originally filed claim to depend from and/or incorporateany feature of any other claim although not originally claimed in thatmanner. These and other objects and/or aspects of the present inventionare explained in detail in the specification set forth below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a front perspective, partial cutaway view of an exemplarybucket assembly/unit according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a partially exploded view of FIG. 1A according to embodimentsof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the bucket assembly shown in FIG.1A without the front cover according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3A is a front perspective view of the bucket assembly of FIGS. 1Aand 2, but shown without the front cover and without the door that holdsthe rotary handle according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a partial exploded view of the door lock assembly shown inFIG. 3A according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the bucket assembly shown in FIG.1A with the drive shaft and door interlock components omitted toillustrate the breaker mechanism with drive shaft portal integrallymounted to the breaker bucket assembly according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the bucket assembly shown in FIG.1A illustrating the breaker rotary to linear translating operatingmechanism according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the rotary to linear translating operatingmechanism according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 7A is a front view of a unit illustrating exemplary ON and OFFrotary positions according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 7B is a front view of a unit with a dual feeder configuration withtandem mounted rotary handles according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 is a front view of an exemplary Motor Control Center cabinetaccording to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9A is a front perspective view of a bucket assembly (with part ofthe housing removed) that has a fuse disconnect assembly according toembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9B is a partial exploded, front perspective view of the bucketassembly shown in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 9C is a left-side perspective, partially exploded view of thebucket assembly shown in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 9D is a left-side perspective, partially exploded view of thebucket assembly shown in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 10A is left-side, partially exploded view of the bucket assemblyshown in FIG. 9D illustrating the primary drive gear apart from the rackgear and slider according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 10B is an enlarged view of the slider and gear components shown inFIG. 10A.

FIGS. 11A, 11B and 11C are side perspective views of small breakers ofincreasing frame size that each include a substantially common operatormechanism configuration (with the units oriented 90 degrees from anormal operative position) according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are side perspective views of large breakers ofincreasing frame size that each include a substantially common operatormechanism configuration (with the units oriented 90 degrees from anormal operative position) according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 12C is a perspective view of a circuit breaker with a trip unitmodule according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12D is a perspective view of an example of a trip unit moduleaccording to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an exploded view of a handle mechanism illustrating anexemplary detent configuration according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 is a front perspective view of an exemplary fused switchdisconnect arrangement according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 15 is a top perspective view of a fused switch arrangement with afuse and a load-end fuse clip connection according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which illustrativeembodiments of the invention are shown. Like numbers refer to likeelements and different embodiments of like elements can be designatedusing a different number of superscript indicator apostrophes (e.g., 10,10′, 10″, 10′″).

In the drawings, the relative sizes of regions or features may beexaggerated for clarity. This invention may, however, be embodied inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theembodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided sothat this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fullyconvey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. maybe used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layersand/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/orsections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only usedto distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section fromanother region, layer or section. Thus, a first element, component,region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a secondelement, component, region, layer or section without departing from theteachings of the present invention.

Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”,“upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description todescribe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) orfeature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that thespatially relative terms are intended to encompass differentorientations of the device in use or operation in addition to theorientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in thefigures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” otherelements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elementsor features. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompass both anorientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented(rotated 90° or at other orientations) and the spatially relativedescriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

The term “about” refers to numbers in a range of +/−20% of the notedvalue.

As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless expressly stated otherwise. Itwill be further understood that the terms “includes,” “comprises,”“including” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification,specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations,elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,elements, components, and/or groups thereof. It will be understood thatwhen an element is referred to as being “connected” or “coupled” toanother element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the otherelement or intervening elements may be present. As used herein, the term“and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of theassociated listed items.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will befurther understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly useddictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that isconsistent with their meaning in the context of this specification andthe relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overlyformal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

The term “escutcheon” refers to a cover residing about the operatorhandle.

The terms “operating mechanism” and “operator mechanism” are usedinterchangeably and refer to an assembly for opening and closingseparable main contacts in a circuit breaker and/or for turning power ONand OFF using a switch associated with a fuse (e.g., a fuseddisconnect). The circuit breaker can be for a motor starter unit orfeeder unit, for example.

The terms “bucket assembly”, “bucket” and “unit” are usedinterchangeably and refer to a structure (typically a protective metalshell) that contains either a fuse or a circuit breaker for turningpower ON and OFF to a motor, or feeder circuit, typically forcontrolling power to motor starters. As is well known, the bucket canbe, for example, a feeder unit or a starter unit. The bucket assemblycan include other components such as a power transformer, a motorstarter to control a single motor and PLCs (programmable logiccontrollers), drives and the like. The bucket assembly can be configuredas a modular device to allow the internal components to be assembled asa unit that can be easily installed into a Motor Control Center (MCC)compartment. As is well known, the bucket can have “power stabs” in theback that connect to vertical bus bars that carry power (current) to thecompartments of a vertical section in an MCC cabinet. The vertical busbars are connected to the larger horizontal bus bars that bring power tothe vertical sections. The horizontal bus bars are usually in the top,but some MCC designs may have them in the center or bottom. MCCs usuallyhave a wire way for wires to the motors and other loads and controlwires.

MCCs can be configured in many ways. Each compartment can have adifferent height to accept different frame sizes of respective bucketassemblies or units 10, typically in about 6-inch increments. Thevertical bus can be omitted or not run through the full height of thesection to accommodate deeper buckets for larger items like variablefrequency drives. The MCC can be a modular cabinet system for poweringand controlling motors or feeder circuits. Several may be powered frommain switchgear which, in turn, gets its power from a transformerattached to the incoming line from the power company.

A typical MCC cabinet is an enclosure with a number of small doorsarranged in rows and columns along the front and flat, mostlyfeatureless, back and sides. The buckets can be provided in varyingsizes. For starter units, the size can be based on the size of the motorthey are controlling. The bucket assembly can be configured to berelatively easily removable for repair, service or replacement. MCCs canhave, for example, regular starters, reversing starters, soft start, andvariable frequency drives. MCCs can be configured so that sections canbe added for expansion if needed.

The term “compact” refers to bucket units 10 (also known as buckets) ina very condensed configuration (package) relative to conventionalunits/buckets. The MCC structure or cabinet 100 (FIG. 8) can be designedto receive multiple bucket units 10 ranging in various defined sizes.The units 10 can be provided in package or frame sizes of about 6 inchesto about 72 inches (tall) with substantially common depth and widthdimensions, known as 1× (6 inches) to 12× (72 inches) sizes. The sizescan be in single × increments, from 1×, 2×, 3×, 4×, 5×, 6×, 7×, 8×, 9×,10×, 11× and 12×. Thus, a 5×MCC unit 10 can be about 30 inches tall. Theframe sizes can be provided for a plurality of amperages, including aplurality of: 125 A, 150 A, 225 A, 250 A, 400 A, 600 A, 1200 A and 2000A, for example.

Referring now to the figures, FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate and example ofa bucket assembly or unit 10. The bucket assembly can be configured forDC (direct current) and/or AC (alternating current) operation. Thebucket assembly 10 can include a front cover 10 c. The bucket assemblycan include at least one door 22 under the front cover. The bucketassembly 10 can have a metal frame or housing 11.

In some embodiments, the bucket assembly 10 can comprise a molded casecircuit breaker. Molded case circuit breakers are well known to those ofskill in the art, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,503,408 and5,910,760, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference asif recited in full herein. In other embodiments, the bucket assembly 10can be configured to house a fuse disconnect with a fuse disconnectswitch to turn power on and off (FIGS. 9A-9D, for example). In someembodiments, the MCC cabinet 100 can hold both type bucket units 10(e.g., 10F and 10C) and each can have a standardized rotary handle 20 hthat controls the internal components for power on/off operation (FIG.8).

The unit 10 includes a handle mechanism 20 with a rotary handle 20 h.For the circuit breaker unit 10C, the unit 10 includes a shaft 25 thatcommunicates with the handle 20 h can be rotated through definedtranslations of rotation from circuit breaker conduction to circuitbreaker non-conduction. Typically, there is about a 90° rotation fromconduction to non-conduction (“OFF” to “ON”) but other definedrotational stroke distances may be used including, for example, about 45degrees, about 120 degrees, or about 180 degrees. The handle 20 h can beconfigured to turn about 90 degrees in all different breaker sizes in asingle MCC cabinet 100 (FIG. 8) that can provide standardized visualoutput of “on/off” and can allow for standardized components betweendifferent assemblies 10.

The rotary handle 20 h can be attached to an inwardly extending shaft 25(FIG. 3A) that is keyed to a drive gear 42, 42′ (FIG. 5, FIG. 9B). Thedrive gears 42, 42′ can have the same configuration (e.g., be the samecomponent) or may have different dimensions or configurations. In someembodiments, the drive gear for the operator mechanism 42 as well as thedrive gear 42′ for the fuse mechanism 260 can have gear teeth thatextends less than a full circumference of the respective gear, typicallythe gear teeth 42 t extend for between about 9-180 degrees, moretypically about 90 degrees of the circumference of the drive gear 42,42′.

In operation, the orientation of the rotary handle 20 h can provide avisual indication of the conduction status of the operator disconnect,e.g., breaker 60 (FIG. 1A) or ON/OFF switch for the fuse disconnectswitch 260 (FIGS. 9A-9D).

If the handle 20 h is in a generally horizontal position, i.e., with thenose, lever or thumb knob straight across the front of the circuitbreaker as shown in FIG. 1A, this orientation can be the OFF positionand can be visually used as an indication that the contacts of thecircuit breaker are open and that current is blocked. If the handle 20 his rotated from the orientation shown in FIG. 1A, e.g., rotated 90degrees (typically clockwise from the orientation in FIG. 1A) asillustrated by the broken line position and arrow direction in FIG. 7A,to be parallel with the long longitudinal axis of the circuit breakerand/or the handle position in FIG. 9A, then an indication is given thatthe circuit contacts are closed and current is being conducted. Thebreaker trip position can be at about 45 degrees mid-point between ONand OFF.

The handle 20 h can be circular with a protruding thumb or fingersegment 21 and/or a “T” shaped member or feature (e.g., an insert) 23residing substantially inside the circular profile with the smallcross-end of the T on the outer perimeter as shown in FIG. 1A or maycomprise a rotating lever type as is known to those of skill in the art.

The handle can have a rectangular lever or arm and this end can beoriented to reside on the handle 20 h to provide a clean visualindicator of handle position (e.g., ON and OFF) readily visible from adistance (e.g., 5-20 feet away) in a room holding the MCC 100 (FIG. 8)with the unit(s) 10.

FIG. 2 illustrates the unit 10 without the outer front cover 11 c. FIGS.3A and 3B illustrate the unit 10 with the door 22 and front cover 10 comitted. FIG. 2 illustrates that the handle mechanism 20 can be fixedthe front panel door 22. The door 22 may optionally be hingeablyattached to the frame 11 f of the housing 11. The unit 10 can include anexternal door defeat interlock 22 i.

FIGS. 11A-11C, 12A and 12B illustrate that the units 10 can be circuitbreaker units 10C provided in different frame sizes. The orientation ofthe units 10C shown in FIGS. 11A-11C is rotated 90 degrees from thetypical operative position shown in FIG. 1A, for example.

As is shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the unit 10 can include an internalautomated interlock assembly 30. As is also shown, the assembly 30 caninclude a bolt 31 and a biasing member 33 to urge the latch 35 into alocked configuration to extend through door bracket 222 and engage theinterlock bracket 44. The latch 35 can releasably engage an inwardlyfacing primary surface 44 s of the bracket 44 to lock the door shut. Thebracket 222 can be attached to a rear primary surface of the door 22 r(proximate the aperture 22 a for the sliding latch 35) as shown in FIG.1B.

FIG. 1B also illustrates that the unit 10 can include a divider pan 14with associated apertures 14 a that can cooperate with interlocks 14 a ₁and/or pin locks 14 a ₂, for example.

The biasing member 33 is shown as a coil spring, but other biasingmembers may also be used including, for example, a leaf spring,belleville or stacked dome washers and elastic plugs or combinations ofthe same. The door 22 can include a hinge 22 h that attaches to theframe 11 f of the housing and supports the bolt 31 and biasing member33.

The interlock assembly 30 can be integrated in the operator envelope oroperator mechanism 40 and can be an automated mechanism. Thus, theinterlock assembly 30 can reside inside the operator mechanism envelope40 that comprises a laterally extending spring 33 residing over a doorinterlock bolt 31 configured so that the bolt can be electronicallydirected to automatically slidably extend to lock the door bracket 44.

In some embodiments, the circuit breaker 10 can include a handleescutcheon 227 (FIG. 3A) that communicates with the spring-loaded doorlock assembly 30 that locks the door 22 shut when the circuit isenergized. The door 22, latch 35 and door catch configuration 44 can beconfigured so as to avoid requiring manual adjustment for properassembled alignment using the biasing member 33.

Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the handle escutcheon 227 can interactwith an upwardly extending arm 225 with a horizontally oriented slot 228that slidably engages a stationary shaft 229 as a safety lock for thedoor.

FIGS. 3A and 3B also illustrate that the rotary handle 20 h can engagean inwardly extending drive shaft 25 that extends into the unit housingthrough the door 22 or other housing frames 11 f via a path or portal 25p.

The circuit breaker unit 10C also includes a rotary to lineartranslating operator mechanism 40. The operator mechanism 40 can beintegrally and/or permanently mounted to the unit housing or body 11.

As shown in FIG. 6, the operator mechanism 40 can include a drive gear42, a pinion gear 144, and an operator rack gear 46. Generallysummarized, the handle 20 h via shaft 25 is keyed to interface with therotary drive gear 42. Drive gear 42 interacts mechanically with piniongear 144. Pinion gear 144 also interacts with the linearlytranslationally moveable rack 46. Consequently, as the handle 20 hrotates, because it is interlocked with the drive gear 42, the drivegear 42 rotates on its axis, thus rotating the pinion gear 144, whichthen linearly moves the rack 46. The rack 46 then moves the operatorslider 52 which moves to trip lever 90 as the handle 20 h moves.

Referring to FIGS. 4-6, the operator mechanism 40 can include anoperator base 50 and the slider 52. The operator base 50 can bestationary and affixed to the inner housing 11 h (FIG. 6). The base 50can have a horizontally oriented elongate slot 50 s that is aligned witha smaller slot 52 s in the operator slider 52. The slots 50 s, 52 scooperate to hold lever 90 (toggle) and when the operator slider withslot 52 s moves to the right (based on rotation of the handle 20 h, forexample), this moves the lever 90 to the right along the path defined byslot 50 s.

It is noted that the lever 90 (also known as a toggle) can movelaterally as shown or the circuit breaker or fuse switch may be orientedto move vertically.

FIGS. 9A-9D illustrate an exemplary fuse bucket 10F with the drive gear42′ in communication with a rack gear 46 that moves up and down ororthogonal to the rack gear 46 of the operating mechanism 40 shown inFIGS. 1A-5, for example. This movement can engage and move a fuse switchlever or input up and down for ON/OFF operation (FIG. 15 illustrates anexemplary arrangement of a fuse and load end fuse clip).

For units with circuit breakers 60, the operating mechanism 40 can alsoinclude a trip assist spring 43 that is in communication with the rackgear 46 to assist the handle 20 h to move to a consistent OFF positionwhen the circuit breaker is tripped.

As shown in FIG. 5, the spring 43 is typically compressed in operativeposition. As also shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the rack gear 46 can have anoutwardly extending arm 47 (extending in a direction toward the door 22)with an opening 48. The opening 48 can receive a guide rod 41 that canbe held in the trip assist spring 43 to provide a controlled lateraltravel path for the trip assist spring 43. Where used, the arm 47 canhave an open or closed end (forming a through aperture or an outwardfacing open ended slot) to hold the guide rod 41 and cooperate withouter member 49 to compress the spring 43 (or other biasing member). Thespring 43 typically resides between the end frame of the housing and anarm 47 or other support member that can cooperate with the spring 43 toprovide the desired compression.

The spring 43 can spring bias the operating mechanism 40 to a consistenttrip position, independent of a breaker toggle trip position. That is,in the past, if tripped, the lever or breaker toggle 90 will move to aTRIP position with little force. Unfortunately, this may not besufficient force to move the lever 90 to a consistent triporientation/position.

The spring 43 can be configured to provide a suitable trip-assist force.The spring 43 can be configured with a length and and/or k-factor suchthat the slider 52 is biased to a center of its travel path between ONand OFF positions. The length of the spring 43 can vary depending on thetype or size lever 90 and/or associated breaker 60. Although shown asone spring 43, more than one spring can be used, alone or with othercooperating members, e.g., an elastically resilient plug, bellevillewashers, stacked resilient dome washers and the like, to provide adesired spring force and/or biasing action. In addition, the spring 43may be omitted in favor of one or more different resilient members toprovide a suitable trip assist force.

In some embodiments, the spring 43 can have a length that is about 50%to about 100% of a length of the travel path of the operator slider 52between ON and OFF positions.

The spring 43 can reside between a mounting member 55 and the operatorbase 50. The mounting member 55 can be formed integral with the basemember 50 or be provided as a separate component that can attach to theoperator base 50. The mounting member 55 can hold the guide rod 41 abovethe lever 90. The mounting member 55 can include an end portion thatturns inwardly to be substantially orthogonal to a primary surface 55 pof the mounting member. The end portion 55 e can include a slot, channelor aperture 55 a that allows the rod 41 to extend through to support therod. However, the mounting member 50 can hold the rod inside its bodyand does not require the aperture 55 a. The mounting member 55 can be amonolithic member with a formed end portion 55 e or may include attachedcooperating components.

The operator base 50 and be in communication with the rack gear 46 tocan provide sufficient force to move the handle 20 h to a consistentTRIP position/orientation.

The handle 20 h can be detented when the operating mechanism 40 is inthe spring-biased TRIP position to be in an externally visibleconsistent TRIP position. The ON and OFF positions can be separated byabout 90 degrees.

While the circuit breaker bucket 10C is shown with the operatingmechanism 40 having a guide rod 41 in the figures, it is contemplatedthat other configurations or components can be used to provide thedesired controlled lateral path for the compression of the spring 43and/or other biasing members and proper movement of the sliding base 52and/or rack 46 to provide the desired trip assistance.

In operation, the breaker 60 with the spring 43 can bias/force theslider 52 to move to a position at or proximate a center of a travellength. The spring 43 can be sized and configured to move the handle 20h to a middle position, e.g., about 45 degrees.

FIG. 13 illustrates the handle 20 h and an underlying base 20 b thatslidably (rotatably) holds the external handle 20 h. The base 20 b caninclude visual indicial 20 i of handle operational position, e.g., theOn/OFF/TRIP/RESET position text and/or color-coded features atappropriate locations about an outer perimeter. Alternatively oradditionally, the exterior cover 10 c may include this visual indicia.As shown, the handle 20 h can include an inwardly extending plunger 20 pthat cooperates with surface features or members on the base 20 b. Asshown, the base 20 b can include a projecting feature or memberconfigured as a detent 20 d that resides in line with a trip position ofthe handle 20 h between the ON and OFF positions. The plunger 20 p canreside inside a spring 20 s or cooperate with other biasing members tofacilitate the movement. Thus, the handle 20 h can be detented in thespring biased trip position to the trip position to provide a visuallyconsistent handle 20 h trip position.

The guide rod 41, where used, can have a length that is greater than thelength of the trip assist spring 43 and may have a length that is aboutthe same as a long side width of the operator base 50. In someembodiments, the trip assist spring 43 can have a length that is betweenabout 30-80% less than a length of a guide rod 43 extendingtherethrough.

In some embodiments, the rear surface of the rotary handle 20 h residesa distance “d1” (FIG. 3) that is within about 0.25 inches to about 1inch, more typically from a distance that is about ½′ to about ¾ inch,from the front surface of the operator base 50 (in a depth direction)with the drive gear 42, pinion gear 144, rack gear 46, and trip assistspring 43 therebetween.

FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate that opposing ends of the guide rod 41 can beheld by the mounting member 55 so that the guide rod 41 and spring 43reside above the rack gear teeth 46 t. In some particular embodiments,the guide rod 41 can be held in place using one or more attachmentmembers 53 to inhibit or prevent lateral translation of the guide rod41. The attachment member 53 can comprise a lock washer. In otherembodiments, the attachment members 53 can have other configurations.The attachment member 53 can have threads for a threaded engagement,e.g., a threaded nut. In other embodiments, the rod 41 end portion canbe configured to threadably engage a threaded insert held in theaperture 55 a. In yet other embodiments, the rod 41 can include aradially extending aperture that resides outside the aperture 55 a andcan engage a locking pin or other suitable attachment feature/member.

The mounting member 55 can have a primary upwardly extending surface 55s that is substantially planar and can include a cutout or shape thatprovides an open space 55 o for the toggle or lever 90 and a portaland/or path 55 p for the drive shaft 25. FIGS. 4-6 illustrate that themember 55 can be attached to the operator base 50 and each member 50, 55can be stationary and attached to the circuit breaker 60 via standoffs58.

In some embodiments, the mounting member 55 resides a distance “d2”(FIG. 4) that is within about 0.1 inches to about 0.5 inches from thefront surface of the operator base 50 (in a depth direction) with thedrive gear 42, pinion gear 144, rack gear 46, and trip assist spring 43therebetween, typically about 0.25 inches.

The operating mechanism 40 can include a blocking member 49 that residesabout the rod 41 and that traps the spring to the left of the right halfof the rod 41 and compresses at least a portion of the spring 43 as therack gear 46 translates in one direction (e.g., toward the left).

The operating mechanism 40 can be configured so that the spring 43 has acompressed configuration when in use, e.g., when the lever is in boththe OFF and ON position to be able to bias the slider 52 to a center ofits travel path. Stated differently, the spring 43 is configured to havea compressed configuration irrespective of the position of the rack gear46 and lever 90.

The blocking member 49 can be a washer, nut, sleeve or othersufficiently rigid member and/or a protrusion on the outer surface ofthe rod itself that provides suitable obstruction with a cooperatingcomponent or feature on the rack gear 46 so as to compress the spring 43and provide the desired biasing force.

As shown, the blocking member 49 can contact the upper end portion 46 u(e.g., arm 47) of the rack gear 46. The blocking member 49 and arm 47thus cooperate to trap one end of the spring to thereby compress thespring 43.

Embodiments of the invention provide circuit breakers 10 with a rotaryposition of the rotary handle 20 h positioned on a centerline of thebreaker 60, in-line with a corresponding center pole.

As shown in FIG. 7B, embodiments of the invention can provide units 10with symmetrically positioned disconnect operator handles 20 h on an MCCallowing a panel board, mounted tandem (line to line), dual feederbreakers 60 ₁, 60 ₂, in a compact unit 10 with both handles 20 h aligned(e.g., laterally spaced apart but residing at about the same height orat the same height. The breakers 601, 602 can be oriented so thatrespective load sides 300L are on respective left hand and right handouter ends and the incoming or feed circuit or path 300I can be sharedalong a center of the unit as shown.

FIGS. 9A-9D, 10A and 10B illustrate a bucket unit 10 which is an exampleof a fuse based unit 10F. The unit 10 can include a housing or unit body11 with a housing frame 11 f and external cover 11 c and optional door22. The handle 20 h can reside over on side of the cover 11 c, locatedcloser to a left side of the unit (for single units at a single level).The frame 11 f can include at least one planar laterally extendinginterior frame member 11 i that can include a portal 25 p for aninwardly extending shaft 25 that attaches to the handle 20 h and iskeyed to the drive gear 42′ as discussed with respect to the embodimentshown in FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 9D, the interior frame member 11 ican include cooperating first and second members 11 i ₁ and 11 i ₂, eachwith a shaft portal 25 p.

As shown, the unit 10 includes a fuse body or fuse assembly frame 250with a fused switch 260. FIGS. 14, 15 illustrate an exemplary fusedswitch unit 10F with a fuse and load-end fuse clip arrangement accordingto embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a front perspectiveview of a fused switch arrangement with a line end 263Li fuse clipconnection 263 c and a load-end 263Lo fuse clip connection 263 c thathold respective fuses 263 according to embodiments of the presentinvention. The fused switch 260 can be provided as two separatecomponents that fit into the MCC unit 10 to allow for connection todifferent size fuses 263. The fuses 263 can vary in length “A” and width“B” and still attach to the fuse connectors 263 c. Exemplary fuses areFUSETRON™ 600V Class RK5 fuses (BU-SB13729) available from CooperBussmann Company, St. Louis, Mo. However, the design is flexible and canaccommodate other fuses including those in different classes.

The unit 10 also includes a fuse disconnect assembly 140 that includes aprimary drive gear 42′ and a rack gear 46′ that are in communicationwith the rotary handle 20 h. The rack gear 46′ can be attached to aslider 52′ that translates to move a switch 260 in communication with apivoting arm 262. The arm 262 includes an end portion 262 e that extendsthrough a slot 52 s or opening in the slider 52′. As shown, the pivotingarm 262 also includes a mounting end portion 265 which may optionally besubstantially circular. The mounting end portion 265 can include anaperture that receives an attachment member to be pivotably attached toa fuse body frame and/or housing or housing frame. The arm 262 can alsoinclude a projection member 264 (which can be a discrete member or amonolithic shaped feature and/or portion of the arm) that contacts theswitch 260 to force the switch between ON and OFF positions. In theembodiment shown, the projection feature/member 264 is inclined in anupward direction as it extends a distance above the arm primary body.

The bucket unit 10F can be configured to have a visually similarappearance to the bucket unit 10C with the same handle 20 h and exteriorhousing layout/appearance although the internal ON/OFF circuitcomponents are different.

FIGS. 11A, 11B and 11C illustrate smaller size breakers 60 which havethe same operating mechanism 40 but may include different sizecomponents of the mechanism 40. The operating mechanism 40 can beconfigured to work with a plurality of different breaker levers ortoggles 90 of different sizes. Different components of the operator 40and/or features of the different components of the operator 40 may besized or configured differently to accommodate the different size orlayout of members of the different size breakers 60 and associatedcircuit breaker frames 60 f (FIGS. 11A-C, 12A, and 12B, for example).For example, the base 50 and slider 52 can have a different size foreach size unit, particularly to accommodate different size levers 90 ora different position or travel path length of the lever 90.

In some embodiments, one or more of the gears 42, 144, 46 of theoperator mechanism 40 can be provided in different configurations, e.g.,as first and second configurations, e.g., a small and larger version towork with bucket units having frame sizes/amperages from about 125 A,225 A, 250 A, 400 A and 600 A, for example. The small version refers tocircuit breakers rated between about 125 A and about 250 A. The largerbucket units 10 can have circuit breakers rated above 250 A, including400 A and 600 A.

FIGS. 11A-C illustrate a molded case circuit breaker configuration withthe metal frame configured to allow access to the breaker tripadjustment setting and a push-to-trip button, which may be arrangeddifferently in each frame 60 f. Each type/size breaker can have a uniquetrip switch (e.g., lever or button) location. FIGS. 11A-C illustrateexemplary trip button access feature locations 60T for respective frames60 f.

FIGS. 11C, 12A and 12B illustrate that some bucket units 10 can have abase 50 that provides the trip switch or trip button access features60T. FIG. 12C illustrates an exemplary breaker 60 with an access window210 for the trip switch 210 s (e.g., lever or button). The access window210 can be the same or different sizes in these units 10. The 250 A, 400A and 600 A breakers 60 (FIGS. 11C, 12A, 12B) can be configured withinterchangeable trip unit modules 60M such as shown in FIG. 12D. Thistrip unit module 60M shown in FIG. 12B is can be for the 600 A breaker.The access window 210 can be configured to allow access to this module.The trip unit modules 60M can have several configurations including, forexample, TM (thermal-magnetic), being bimetal overload, ETU (electronictrip unit), and MCP (motor control protection) with only aninstantaneous trip function.

The trip unit module 60M is typically installed prior to the operatingmechanism 40 and can be used only for adjustment access.

The base 50 and cooperating slider 52 can be provided in different sizeswith different length and width slots 50 s to accommodate smaller andlarger toggles or switches 90 associated with frames of differentsizes/amperage rating. In some embodiments, when mounted in the MCCcabinet 100, the handles 20 h can all substantially, if not totally,vertically align and have the same trip and/or ON/OFF positions.

Similarly, an MCC cabinet 100 can be configured so the bucket units 10all have the same handle 20 h in the same position when mounted in theMCC cabinet 100 and the units 10 can have the same ON/OFF operativepositions for both fuse and circuit breaker units 10F, 10C, respectively(FIG. 8).

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 11A-11C, 12A, 12B the guide rod41, where used, can have a different length for some or all thedifferent sizes of the circuit breakers 60.

Each unit 10 with a circuit breaker 60 can have a mounting member 55that has a rod support end 55 e that extends inwardly away from therotary handle 20 h, away from the primary surface 55 s as discussedabove with respect to FIGS. 3 and 4, for example. FIGS. 11A-11C, 12A,and 12B show examples of the mounting members 55 which can havedifferent curvilinear shapes along one long side 55 c to form the openspace 55 o to accommodate the different size/arrangements of the levers90.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of an MCC cabinet 100 that can supportmultiple units 10 of various types 10F, 10C and/or of various definedsizes, typically from between 1× to 12×. Thus, the units 10 can have acompact, visually aesthetic or “clean” appearance provided by alignedhandles 20 h irrespective of breaker or fuse type 10C, 10F andirrespective of frame size (breaker size). The same handle 20 h can beconfigured to accommodate different size gears 40, sliders 52 anddifferent size frames (different size toggles or switches 90) whileproviding an external similar aesthetic visual appearance with a commonlook of the OFF and ON positions of the handles 20 h of units 10 ofvarious types.

The units 10 can have visual indicia 20 v (FIG. 9A) that indicateswhether it is a fuse switch or circuit breaker type unit 10F, 10C,respectively. The visual indicia can include a label, icon, color, andthe like. In some embodiments, handles 20 h can have visual indicia 20 vthat distinguishes the type and/or size (rating) of the unit. The visualindicia 20 v can be provided with a stripe or different contrast colorsfor a protruding lever, knob, handle or “T” or the underlying portion ofthe handle that is externally visible.

Embodiments of the invention provide a handle detent to assist inpositioning the handle to the defined tripped configuration, typicallywith the handle in a vertical orientation. Embodiments of the inventioncan include one or more of the below claims presented in this section ofthe application as an alternate claim listing although not formallypresented in a claim section of the application at filing of theoriginal application.

A bucket assembly with a trip assist spring that cooperates with a rackgear and operator slider that communicate with an internal circuitbreaker to move the external rotary handle to a defined consistentorientation when the circuit breaker trips.

A bucket assembly with an automated latch assembly integrated into theoperator system.

The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to beconstrued as limiting thereof. Although a few exemplary embodiments ofthis invention have been described, those skilled in the art willreadily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplaryembodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings andadvantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications areintended to be included within the scope of this invention. Therefore,it is to be understood that the foregoing is illustrative of the presentinvention and is not to be construed as limited to the specificembodiments disclosed, and that modifications to the disclosedembodiments, as well as other embodiments, are intended to be includedwithin the scope of the invention.

That which is claimed is:
 1. A bucket assembly, comprising: an external rotary handle having a defined ON position and OFF position associated with conduction and non-conduction; a shaft attached to the rotary handle and extending into the bucket assembly; an operator mechanism cooperably engaging the shaft, the operator mechanism comprising a gear assembly with a rack gear that linearly moves an operator slider; a circuit breaker in the bucket assembly having a lever in communication with the operator slider; and a trip assist spring that is held on a rod that is parallel to the rack gear, wherein the trip assist spring cooperates with the rack gear to move the external rotary handle to a defined consistent orientation when the circuit breaker trips, and wherein the trip assist spring and rod are parallel to a side of a primary body of the rack gear comprising gear teeth.
 2. The bucket assembly of claim 1, wherein the trip assist spring and rod are both held in a fixed lateral orientation over their respective lengths, wherein the fixed lateral orientation is parallel to a long side of the side of the primary body as the side of the primary body comprising gear teeth, and wherein the rod extends through the trip assist spring and has a length that is greater than the trip assist spring, wherein the rotary handle ON and OFF positions are about 90 degrees apart, and wherein the trip assist spring is in a compressed state when the lever is in the ON and OFF positions to be able to bias the operator slider to a center of its travel path.
 3. The bucket assembly of claim 1, wherein the trip assist spring is held above the rack gear in a fixed horizontal orientation on the rod, wherein the rod has a length that is greater than the trip assist spring, and wherein the trip assist spring and extends over a sub-length of the rod in a compressed configuration and applies a force to bias the operator slider to reside at a location that is at a medial position of its sliding travel path.
 4. A bucket assembly, comprising: an external rotary handle having a defined ON position and OFF position associated with conduction and non-conduction; a shaft attached to the rotary handle and extending into the bucket assembly; an operator mechanism cooperably engaging the shaft, the operator mechanism comprising a gear assembly with a rack gear that linearly moves an operator slider; a circuit breaker in the bucket assembly having a lever in communication with the operator slider; and a trip assist spring that cooperates with the rack gear to move the external rotary handle to a defined consistent orientation when the circuit breaker trips, wherein the trip assist spring is parallel to the rack gear, wherein the rotary handle has an externally visible protruding shaped feature or member, wherein the rotary handle comprises an escutcheon that interacts with an upwardly extending arm with a horizontally oriented slot that slidably engages a stationary shaft as a safety lock for the door.
 5. A bucket assembly, comprising: a rotary handle attached to an inwardly oriented shaft; a drive gear in communication with the shaft so that rotation of the rotary handle rotates the drive gear; a pinion gear in communication with the drive gear; a rack gear in communication with the pinion gear; an operator slider in communication with the rack gear; a stationary operator base in communication with the operator slider and attached to a circuit breaker; a breaker lever in communication with the operator slider; and a trip assist spring in communication with the rack gear and slider, wherein the trip assist spring applies a force to bias the operator slider to reside at a location that is at a medial position of its sliding travel path to thereby provide a trip assist force to move the rotating handle to a consistent OFF position when the circuit breaker trips.
 6. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the circuit breaker comprises a housing with a door, the rotary handle residing outside the door, and wherein the door comprises an automated electronically operated internal interlock assembly inside the operator mechanism envelope that comprises a laterally extending spring residing over a door interlock bolt, wherein the bolt slidably extends to lock a door bracket.
 7. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the rack gear comprises rack gear teeth, and wherein the trip assist spring is held over an outer surface of a guide rod held above the rack gear teeth.
 8. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the rack gear comprises horizontally oriented rack gear teeth, and wherein the rack gear comprises an upper segment that resides a distance above the rack gear teeth, and wherein the trip assist spring is held in a horizontal orientation over a guide rod held by the upper segment of the rack gear.
 9. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the trip assist spring has an uncompressed length that is between about 50-100% of a length of the slider's sliding travel path.
 10. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the trip assist spring has continuously compressed configurations when in operative position.
 11. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the trip assist spring has a length that is 30-80% less than a length of a guide rod extending therethrough.
 12. The assembly of claim 5, and wherein the trip assist spring is held by an outwardly extending arm of the rack gear in a horizontal orientation over a guide rod above rack gear teeth of the rack gear, and wherein at least one end portion of the guide rod is held in a fixed position.
 13. The assembly of claim 5, further comprising: a stationary mounting member that has a primary planar surface and an end portion that extends inwardly therefrom, residing in front of the operator base, closer to the rotary handle than the operator base; and a guide rod holding the trip assist spring, the guide rod having an end portion attached to the end portion of the mounting member.
 14. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the rotary handle is positioned on a centerline of the circuit breaker, substantially in-line with a corresponding center pole, to allow a load side of the breaker to reside facing an outer side wall of the housing.
 15. The assembly of claim 5 in combination with a plurality of bucket assemblies held in a Motor Control Center cabinet, wherein the rotary handles of different bucket assemblies are vertically aligned irrespective of a size of a frame of the circuit breaker and have a substantially common ON/OFF position of the rotary handle.
 16. The assembly of claim 15, further comprising a handle having an inwardly extending plunger rotably residing in a base having a detent to assist in positioning the rotary handle to a defined OFF position in a tripped configuration.
 17. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the door interlock assembly resides within about 0.5 inches to about 1 inch envelope between a door under a front cover of and the operator base in a depth direction along with the drive gear, pinion gear, rack gear, and trip assist spring therebetween.
 18. The assembly of claim 5, wherein the operator base has a horizontally extending slot, and wherein the operator slider has a rectangular slot that is smaller than the base operator slot, and wherein the breaker lever extends through both the operator slider and operator base slots, wherein the rack gear is attached to an upper portion of the operator slider, and wherein the trip assist spring is in communication with an upper portion of the rack gear.
 19. A bucket assembly, comprising: a rotary handle attached to an inwardly oriented shaft; a gear assembly attached to the shaft configured to translate rotational input to linear input; an operator slider in communication with the gear assembly; a breaker lever in communication with the operator slider; and a trip assist spring held by a laterally extending guide rod in communication with the gear assembly, wherein the guide rod is behind and perpendicular to the inwardly oriented shaft, and wherein, during a trip event, the trip assist spring forces the rotary handle to a consistent trip position.
 20. A motor control center (MCC) cabinet with bucket units having external rotary handles, wherein one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handle communicates with a fused disconnect switch and one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handles communicate with an operator mechanism for a circuit breaker disconnect, wherein all the rotary handles have the same configuration and the same ON/OFF rotary positions, wherein the bucket units include different breaker fused disconnect switch sizes with different size frames while providing a common external visual appearance with aligned rotary handles in the same ON and OFF rotary positions, and wherein the fused disconnect switch and the operator mechanism of the one or more bucket units each comprise a separate cooperating drive gear, rack gear and slider, and wherein the operator mechanism further comprises a laterally extending spring that is parallel to the rack gear and that bias' the slider to a medial position of a sliding travel path.
 21. A motor control center (MCC) cabinet with bucket units having external rotary handles, wherein one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handle communicates with a fused disconnect switch and one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handles communicate with an operator mechanism for a circuit breaker disconnect, and wherein all the rotary handles have the same configuration and the same ON/OFF rotary positions, and wherein the bucket units include different breaker fused disconnect switch sizes with different size frames while providing a common external visual appearance with aligned rotary handles in the same ON and OFF rotary positions, wherein the bucket units with the fused disconnect switch and the bucket units with the operator mechanism each comprise a drive gear, a rack gear and a slider, wherein the drive gear, rack gear and sliders have different sizes and cooperate with respective levers, and wherein the bucket unit with the fused disconnect switch comprises a pivoting arm that has a lower end portion that extends into a slot or aperture of the slider and a switch contact member or feature that engages the fused disconnect switch.
 22. The MCC cabinet of claim 20, wherein all bucket units with a single breaker and fused disconnect switch have rotary handles that are aligned along a left hand side of the MCC.
 23. A motor control center (MCC) cabinet with bucket units having external rotary handles, wherein one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handle communicates with a fused disconnect switch and one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handles communicate with an operator mechanism for a circuit breaker disconnect, wherein all the rotary handles have the same configuration and the same ON/OFF rotary positions, wherein the bucket units include different breaker fused disconnect switch sizes with different size frames while providing a common external visual appearance with aligned rotary handles in the same ON and OFF rotary positions, and wherein the rotary handles comprise an escutcheon that interacts with an upwardly extending arm with a horizontally oriented slot that slidably engages a stationary shaft as a safety lock for the door.
 24. A motor control center (MCC) cabinet with bucket units having external rotary handles, wherein one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handle communicates with a fused disconnect switch and one or more bucket units are configured so that the rotary handles communicate with an operator mechanism for a circuit breaker disconnect, wherein all the rotary handles have the same configuration and the same ON/OFF rotary positions, wherein the bucket units include different breaker fused disconnect switch sizes with different size frames while providing a common external visual appearance with aligned rotary handles in the same ON and OFF rotary positions, and wherein the rotary handles comprise an inwardly extending plunger with a spring held thereabout to facilitate movement of the rotary handles to a consistent handle TRIP position. 